


Home is where the Heart is

by Ghostfries



Category: Mad Rat Dead (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Gen, Give Heart the love and affection he deserves, Grief/Mourning, Hurt/Comfort, Mercy Kill, Spoilers, Themes of mortality, zalgo text
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-21
Updated: 2020-11-21
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:55:59
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,738
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27618704
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ghostfries/pseuds/Ghostfries
Summary: Heart needs a new place to belong.
Relationships: Heart & Little Girl, Mad Rat & Heart
Comments: 5
Kudos: 35





	Home is where the Heart is

**Author's Note:**

> Yo cool kids I heard y'all were starving for content.

Heart was perched atop a skyscraper, staring up at the moon that lingered over the smog and pollution of the city. Getting up to this point had been an ordeal, with Mad Rat weak and Heart unused to his old body, but with a little platforming action they made it.

Heart was glad. It was all worth it to see the moon with him one last time.

He knew immediately when Mad Rat lay down this was the end of their journey.

"Heart...?" asked the rat tentatively, crossing his arms over the weak beating of his chest.

"What is it?" Heart replied.

"Can I ask you for one last favor?"

Heart's ears pricked up. Anything he could do for Mad Rat in these final moments, he would. He could go get some cheese, or rewind time, or-

"This kinda hurts." Mad Rat forced a coarse laugh. "Like hell."

"I'm sorry." Heart said. He wished he could rewind time and do this over and over, sacrifice himself instead of the other way around... but even that wouldn't save Mad Rat. "W-What can I do?"

"It turns out... slow heart failure is a- an awful way to go," coughed Mad Rat. Heart could barely stand to see the state his best friend had been reduced to. "Could you... y'know... don't make me say it."

Heart backed away in shock. This couldn't be happening.

No, no, no way. That was the one thing Heart could absolutely never do. He'd defied his nature most of his life, preferring not to hunt wild animals and simply taking the remnants of whatever he could find. Maybe it was natural for a cat to kill a rat, but it was different with them! "You know I- I can't do that!"

Mad Rat glanced at him for a second before rolling over again.

"Sorry... that was a cruel thing to ask." he said, more resigned than bitter. "Forget it."

Heart sat by his side, brow furrowed. Only when Mad Rat let out a sharp, shuddering hiss of pain did the cat waver. Seeing his partner writhing on the ground, helpless in the face of death, was almost worse than him abruptly kicking the bucket like usual. If cats could cry, Heart would be bawling right about now.

Instead, he slowly, silently unsheathed claws that glinted in the moonlight.

"...Understood, Mad Rat. I'll do it."

Mad Rat gave a wonky smile. "Heh. Thanks."

So Heart said, but actually killing Mad Rat with his own two paws was easier said than done. Every time he reached out, he would tremble too much. Mad Rat grabbed onto the claw and held it over his forehead, just touching but not drawing blood.

"You've seen me die hundreds of times, right?" boasted the rat. "I'm not afraid of something stupid like death! I'm happy! It's a big middle finger to that false god, to die the way I choose! And I choose you, Heart."

"If I..." Heart hesitated. "Stab you in the head... you shouldn't feel anything..."

"All my deaths so far were instant," said Mad Rat. His smirk had a tinge of uncertainty to it. "So finish it in one blow. Don't hesitate. If you half-ass it, I'll end up dying in agony."

"No pressure or anything..."

"One go, or I'll come back as a poltergeist and haunt you," Mad Rat instructed firmly. "Got that?"

"I got it." Heart said. He was set.

They stared at each other in silence, Mad Rat tapping his foot impatiently.

"Get on with it!" He snapped. "E-Even I'll get nervous if you draw this out!"

"There are so many last words I want to say to you..." Heart dipped his head low. "But the biggest one is 'thank you'. For letting me be your heart, even if it was only for a day."

"Hey now, what're you saying?" Mad Rat gripped the claw tighter. "You'll still be my heart when I'm gone! No afterlife is gonna get rid of me that easy!"

At that, Heart gave a wry laugh. "I've never seen someone so excited to die."

"Hell yeah I'm pumped," said Mad Rat, pathetically raising a fist to the sky. "I dunno what's going to happen, but at least I won't have this messed-up body anymore!"

Heart shook his head incredulously.

"Alright... close your eyes, Mad Rat. Focus on the beat I'm sending you."

Mad Rat did so. "Hum... this song's pretty dope. I'd dance to it if I had the energy."

"Just keep listening." Heart said as he raised his paw.

At the end of the night, the music didn't stop, even when there was nobody left to hear it.

* * *

Heart stalked the streets from then on. He had nowhere to go, and he certainly didn't feel like returning to the lab. He hung around the park, the streets, he even stopped by the sewer. As he tiptoed through the murk, deftly avoiding the water, he came across a familiar sight. An empty wall, though something was off about it.

The drawing Mad Rat made wasn't there. It made sense, given that their time-traveling nullified his involvement in his final day, but seeing nothing felt like ... being slapped in the face with the fact he really was gone.

Only one thing to do.

He sharpened his claws and carved the doodle from memory. It didn't turn out how he wanted it to, but it was better than nothing. Mad Rat was _there,_ damn it. He was a being, he existed in this world, and Heart wouldn't stand for his visage being erased. Not even if it meant fighting time itself.

A bright idea hit him, and he made one more mark on the wall. A crudely-drawn cartoon heart.

"There we go," Heart narrated to himself. "Now everything's as it should be."

Well, it was as close as he would get, anyway.

* * *

One day, Heart was collapsed under a park bench, trying to sleep just to get away for a few hours. To not be awake, when all the bad feelings were after him. The pervading exhaustion never seemed to relent.

"M̴̡̡̀̓̏̒͂̈́͜o̶̠̫̜͋̊̌m̷̗̜̐͝m̴͈̩̐̀̉͆̉ͅͅẙ̷̢̢̘̰͈̅̈̅͠, ̴̡̖͆͆̆ ̸̰͇̹l̴͈̦̞̤͉̣̆̓̕ô̶͙̋͠ő̷̼͔̖̩̘͗̿k̷̭̺͌̐͘! ̶"

He could tell it was human speech right away. He opened his eyes, yellow orbs peering through the shadows to see a little girl. The same one from that fateful day, equipped with her signature sun hat. She scooped him up and dragged him out from under, and fear struck Heart. Was he going to be experimented on? No, this girl wasn't like that scientist, right?!

"T̶̺̳͖̀h̸͖̳̝̔̾̊i̶̪̦͓̬̅̀̈s̸͕̦̃ ̵͖̼̣̤̌̄̚̚ī̸̫͌s̸̯̰͕̒ ̶̭͕̅́̎͑ţ̸̗͕̆̏͌ḩ̶̩̺͂̑̐̈́e̸͉̋ ̵̢̠̤̈́ċ̶̥͍̓͜à̶̦̳t̸̲̜̺̦̄̒ ̵̣͐̌I̷͇͉̔̌ ̴͇̀ṱ̴̫̓͒̓͂o̶̭̘̱̎̕l̴͉̺͚̥͗̾d̵͔͕̓ ̵̼͎̮̀͊͂͝y̷̨͍̑͒̚͜o̵̹͉̳͉͐͒ű̷̝̤͖ ̵̮͒̑̀͝a̵̧͔̯̍b̴̠͇̓̐͐͒ö̸̗̜͓́ṳ̶̹̦̻̀ţ̷̲͖͋̊͝! ̸͓̞͙̣́͂͛͝ ̴̢̞̳͋̄Ṫ̶͎̝́̓h̵̙͓̬͈̽e̴̡͂̃͑ ̴̛̻̮̇͛̄o̶̤͑̎͆ń̵͕̆̆͑e̸͎͎͒͊̕͜͠ ̴̛̤̬͉̪t̵̘̪̀̐͂͌h̶͎͊͛a̶̭͇̖̝̎̏ẗ̶̲͙́̀̀̓ ̵̬̣́s̸̮̘̜̪͋̊͛̉ã̴̭̈́̇̒ṿ̸̨̩͂̐̆͜ė̵͍d̵̢͉̙͍͝ ̶̧̖̌͗́̕m̸̦̣̹̼̒̓́̒é̶̜͆̒͝ ̴̧̛͈͒͌!"

Heart couldn't understand what she was saying, but she seemed excited. She kept gesturing at him and staring back at the human accompanying her, who Heart assumed was her mother.

The mother opened her mouth and let out sounds.

"H̵ő̶͎͈̭w̸̢ ̴͚̭͇̈́̾̏͋̈͝d̴̨̓ó̵̬̤͉̻̿ ̴̣̑ỳ̵̫͈̬͐̀ǫ̸̟̩́̀͑̓̒u ̸͖͉̯͉̳͂k̸̛̮ṅ̵̗̤̀͛͒̐̆ǫ̵͖͎̺̣̂́͜ͅw̵̨͎̟̰ ̸̡̧̏͆ì̶̡t'̷̭͉͉̣s ̷̙̩͕̳͋͂͒ṯ̷̭̝ȟ̸̳̲̬̖͆e ̸͍̲͋̂͛͌̕s̷̮̻͉a̵̲̯͆͜͠m̸̘̌e̸̢͇̠͚ ̶̡̡̞͉͈͖̀̎̀̽̓͠ơ̶͎̤̓́͐̉͠n̷̨͊̂̓́̉̃͗e̸̟̳̤͈? ̸̜͉̄̿͂͆͐

The little girl pointed at Heart again.

"Î̸̫ ̵͙̳̱̈r̵̰̙̯̜̳̦̻̝̠̊͆̏̒̈̆̓̈́̉͘ḛ̸̮̆̆ṁ̷̨̗̗̭̲̭̯̱̫̭͆͊́̚͠͠em̴̢̩̝̄b̵͚̲̤̘̓̅̉̀̕̕̚e̸͔̺̕r̶̙̖̈́̓͜ ̴̼̳̭̭̳̜̜͈̳͑ṯ̶̡̧͔͚͙͚̒̔͘h̷̗̳̹̹̰͝ę̶̢̡̬̞̻̪̦̠́͆̀͝ ̷̡̨̢̼̞̝͉̫̓́̈́̑̒̀h̸̝̳̹͒̓̀̈́̔͑̄͗̆̈́e̷̛̞̲͕͆̍̐͒̉͘͝͝͝a̷͕̎̎̀̈́͠͝ŕ̷̯͖͓̩͎͎̍̈́̈́̐͘͠t̴̡̨͚̜̟̻̎͆̽̆͌̕-̷̨̟̻̳̰͙̐̇̏̄͋͂̚͜͝ḽ̸̠͔̰̦͔̅̐o̶̢̡̩̻̮͕̠̞͋͛̈̎ͅó̸̥̇́͋́̈́́̿̋k̶̗̫͚͚͖̏̓̈́̂̍i̷̡̮͙͚̩͚̖̼̠̊͊̑̍̏͝ͅn̴̨̪͓̰̈́͆̎̕g̶͈̑́̾͌̕ ̷̛͓͉̟̟͎͙̦b̶̙̊̅̆̌̓ĭ̵̻͖͝r̴̠̟̊͗̉͗̆̑͠͝͝t̵̜̪̞̦̻̾̇͆̂̅͘̚͠h̷̢̡̖̍̅̉͠m̷͎͖̼͈̩̝̭͌́̽̒̆̾̊a̶͇̤̖̽͜r̸͕̝̙̂̀͝k̴̨̞͙̫̬̯̆̂̕͜.̴̤͉͖̯̜͚̖̜͖̄̄̊͐̇͘"

He looked back and forth at the two, wondering what they were talking about. Then, something very strange happened. The girl wrapped her arms around him, burying her face into his fur and nuzzling in.

There were some things that could be understood without words.

This was a hug. Suddenly something in him ached, and he realized that he'd never been touched so tenderly. He'd never even come into contact with another being since Mad Rat died. Or, perhaps it was him who'd been avoiding the world.

"T̸̲̩͙͍̜̠͉̮̗̗̊̀̎̌̏̿ẖ̸̨͖͕͈̲̽̀̾̐ȧ̷̢͖̦̘͉̦̽̐̾̌͗n̸̟͖̭̬̊̔̏̃̀͒͑͊͠͝k̸̞̘͕͊̌̈̉͊́̈́͜ ̶͎̤̠͕̺̂ŷ̶̲͈͚̒o̵̰̻̐͂͋͆̊̔̃̏ů̴̬̱̱̖̓͗̅͋! ̸̧̨͓̙̞̭̳͇̎͌́" The girl whispered.

The taller woman, who towered over Heart even more, kneeled down to their level with a sentimental smile.

"I̷͂͆̊͂͘͠t ̷͔͌̒̿l̷̳͔͚͑̕o̴̓ok̷̫̮͔̯̭̪̹̓̕͜s̷̢̞̏ ̷̢̛̻̘̙̻̬͆̀lï̴̂̍͘k̶̳͒́̍͂̆è̶͕̬͍͖ ̶̳͍̃̌̀̚͠à̵̛̃̕͝ ̵̢͇͈̎̈s̶̾tr̵͋̀͝ay.̸̓́̓"

The little girl grinned widely.

"C̸̞̔̂́̈́ą̵̞̞̊͊n̴̜̖̣̥͔͓͂͒̽̊͛̓ ̶̭̫̬̙̂̈̄̕ẃ̸̱̻̫̈́̑́̀̽è̶̲̥̩͝ ̸̬̰̭͒̕k̵̙͍̗̐̉͜ë̶͚́͊e̷̹͙̭̳͈͇̍̅̚p̶̯̲̲̼͔̙̒̍̈́ ̸̙͚̈́́͌̆͆i̵̛̬̞͔͎̚t̵̤͚̪̩̪͖̄? ̴̺̙̊̾"

"W̴̡̞͉̗͂̃ê̸͈̈̈ ̷͔̤̐͋̑ͅc̶̳̘̹̕ȧ̶͖͖̳̗́n̴̛̹͈'t̸̫̖͔͘ͅ ̷̨̠̔j̵̢͍͘ụ̴̢͎̌̓̂ͅs̸͚̮͐͝t̴̝̓̕ ̶̡͓̍̕͝ľ̴̝͔̦̞͗̏̕e̸̫̞̘̋̈́̿̑ả̴̛̯v̷̧̛̑͘͘ͅe̵̬̟̣͖͑̉̑ ̸̤͌͑́i̴̺̫͚͌ť̸̡̼̥̰ ̵̮̻̭̆̃h̸̞͓̉e̷̢̡̐͂r̴̈̊̾ẻ̵̬̘͘͝.̸̢̥̍̂̓ ̵͈͖͛͋L̶̺̮̦̻̊ḛ̴̦͌t̸̠͆'̵̞͉̻̜̅̇͛͝s̷͔̆̎͘ ̵̳̋͒̈́͛t̴͎̣̋a̸̡̩̲͕̎̄̂͠k̷̰͇͕͝ë̷̛͕͔̭́ ̵̯͉̺̳̃i̶̭ț̷̥͉̃̇̇̎ ̸̋h̶̜̦͔̿̈́̿͝om̵̨̗͋̾ḛ̵͙̱͈͋̽̿ ̴̪̮̳̍̽̌u̶͎̖̝̿ń̸͝t̷̥̀̎̕͝il̵̨̗͙̤͗ ̵̥̾̂͒̚ẅ̶͙̬́͝͠ę̸̮͋̕ ̷̓c̵̼͔̓͘å̷̝̹̫ͅn̵̝̜̞̦̎̅̕ ̴̡̨̳̬̆̔̏̍f̶̧̈͒̈ͅi̴̦̎͊n̷̝̙͕̯̾d̷͈͖̆̂ ̵̥͈̀̃̽͝ȋ̷̘ṯ̴̪͚̳̆̉s̸̟̰̝͍̏̆ ̶̨̯͋̈́̒o̵͓̜͈̣̎̕w̵̘͔̏͋̚͝ṋ̸̬͈̆͆ȩ̴̜͚͗r̵̹̺̲.̵̖̂͆"

Out of nowhere, the woman pried him out of the child's hands and carried him. Heart didn't know where they were going, but he suddenly realized that he was very tired. He was hungry, too. If someone didn't help him soon, he was sure he was going to die. A part of him wanted to embrace that. But another, bigger part said _no._ _This life, this heartbeat isn't just mine. I will not let the beat stop. As long as I live, he does too._

Heart prepared to fight. He didn't want to have to hurt this little girl but he couldn't trust that adult. Who knew what she was up to? He was about to scratch his way out of the woman's grip when he felt a soft hand being pressed to his head.

The warm touch felt kind.

"What am I doing? ...This isn't like me..."

Those thoughts of fighting, of fleeing, where had they come from? Didn't Heart use to try to see the best of things? Had he really let himself become so bitter...?

"These feelings must be what Mad Rat felt all along..." he meowed to himself.

"Ẅ̷̛̠̜̭́͊͆͆o̵̢̢̠̜̙̘̠͈̻̼͑w̴̽̀̓, ̷̨͚̣͚̟̥͍̣̂͂̆̉̽͌̕ ̶̳̹̙̻̯̝̪̘̤́ÿ̷̼́̍͐̄͆ō̸̹u̶͉̠̰͔'ṟ̷͉̖͍͕̽͌̀͜ͅḙ̷̛̖̹͌͌͐͂̓̀̄ ̶͈͙͉͙̱̮͗̂̊̅͛͜ͅͅa̴̛͉̦͍͈̍̄́͛̈́͒̈̊ ̸̨̠̖̮͎͇̺̯͕̗̤̈́̾̀̌ṉ̶̟̮̻̟͚̆̀̔o̶̎͂̏̀̂̈́ī̶̍̉̿̊̊͌͝sy ̸̨̜̳̝͓̪ȯ̵͎͝n̴̡̮͇̼̰̙̺̋̆̃͊̇͛̇͘͠͠ȩ̴̙̟̟͊̈́̅̊͒͜.̸̠̜͚̇̏̾̒̃́"

He didn't know where they were taking him. He could only hope it was someplace safe.

* * *

Heart had never seen the inside of a real human dwelling before. He'd been a stray all his life, a creature of the outdoors and the winter breeze. Meeting someone, getting attached, then moving on.

Transient.

This house was the opposite of him. Stable, cozy. It had comfy-looking beds and more food in one place than Heart had ever seen. He wondered if the scientist also went home to a house this cushy after playing god with animal testing.

The woman set him down onto carpet, and Heart took his time exploring, taking in every inch of this foreign land. The fireplace flickered with warmth, coaxing his frozen bones back to life. The little girl watched every step of the way, always smiling. So places of sanctuary like this really did exist in the world.

A metallic shaking noise caught his attention. He looked to see a metal bowl being shook in his direction by the grown-up one.

"Food."

There were only a few human words Heart could understand, and this was one of them. He trotted over to the bowl and peered inside. It looked like the same stuff that the cats on the big screens ate. He'd seen adverts through shop windows of other cats lapping this stuff up. Did it really taste that good?

The woman was watching, waiting.

"D̸͔͎̫̖̹́͂̊͠o̸͓̠̹̭͗͑n̷̬̖̯̫͌̕͜'̸̯͕͑͐̂t̴̲̊͑͊͝ ̴͐̎̌̕͜b̴̙̼̘͕̉͑͊̌̚ͅe̴̩͚̪͓͚̓ ̵̻̩̲̗̉̾͋̋̐ͅs̴̯̯̽c̸͎̟͕͒̈͒̏̃ă̵̡̧̻̭̞̈́͂ŗ̶̘̘͉̈́́̑͘͜e̷̡͇̞͑́͒̕d̸̛̝͓̻̜͌.̷̠̳̫ ̵̝̟̺̀̈́̈́̎ͅJ̷͇̯̤͔̱̾̃u̸̲͍̰̹͗́͒͒s̷̛̪̿̋̈̿t̸͉̺͈͆̚ ̶̦͎̓͋͠ė̵̥̹̺̑́͘͠a̵͚͓̯̘͚̓͊͗͋t̷͙̺͈̂͝ ̸̦̲̼͓̹͗͘y̷̭̝̜͖͌̾̿͛͜ò̷͚̗̏̏̅̆ǘ̴̟̱͖ͅr̵̈́̃̓̈̅ͅ food."

Hesitantly, he picked one of the bites between his teeth and tasted it.

It was amazingly good. At least, compared to the leftovers and tasteless morsels the scientist gave them. He felt his suspicion melt away and hunger dominate. He ate one, then another, then another.

Those cats on the screens sure were living the dream.

* * *

He came to realize this was a temporary arrangement.

There was no cat bed like those he'd seen before, and he was allowed to sleep atop the covers at the foot of the little girl's bed. He was a passing visitor in this place, too. The grown up woman would talk on the telephone for hours, and he began to understand more human speech.

"Ŷ̵͙̮̭̿o̵̥̯̳̖͑̓͐͝ú̶͉̑̉̆͌ ̴̰̞̥̄̉͜͝͝s̴̨̖̱̠̟̓͜a̸͔͌͆͜i̵͚͍̼͓̤̔̉͊͝d̷̝͍̀̓͆͛̿̈ y̵̨̡̧̠̒͐̐̄͝͠ͅơ̶̛͈̪̾̄u̵̜̖͐͘ ̶̛̦̰̘̩͈͠ḫ̶̲̘͔͙̓͑̃͛̿ͅả̶̭̼̝̾͑v̴͈͠͝ę̶͎̗͍̺̲̄͌͂̉̈́̑ ̷͇͍̠̱̞̔̇̄͝͝ā̷̛̹͓̩͚̙̋̚ ̴̨͍̞̗̰͋̓̉͝m̴͇͇̖̈́̑͌i̶̤̮̥̔̕s̵̩̾̀s̴̟̝̓̓͐̃ͅi̸̤͖̭̹̦͂ň̵̠͆͛̆͝ͅg̵̠̰̬͌̎͛̈́̂ cat?"

She would wait for a response from no one.

"S̷̯̰̬̄̉͠ǒ̷̞̜̞̰̤r̵̖͂̋̒͐r̷̘̟̤̘̼̹͆ỵ̷̤͚͙͕̄̐́̉͋̿,̴̹̭̓̔̔̕͜ ̵̨̝͖͖͂̒̌͊̉̕Ȉ̶̳̪̬̲̤ ̵̳̬̬̹͇̘̑d̵̡̛͖̪̫̠̞̓̆̓̓ô̶̡̘͚͈̋́̑n̸͙͚̿'̴͔̜͗̀͌̕t̵̼̱͈͚̺͛̏͌͝ ̸̡͚̺̠̼͕̎̏̃ţ̵̺͕̱̻̏̒h̸̨͚̹̯̒̉͑̈į̴̞̂ń̴̥͉̤̺̼͊̓k̸̢͇͍̬̤̄͋̏̽̕ ̵̛̛̰̺͈̼̝̈̽̑̚ẗ̵̻͎̭̆h̵̡̢̡͎͉͚͘i̵̛̭͓̚͝s̵̢̙̥̜̽̕ ̸̝̞͍̺̠̈̈́̏̓͝͠o̵̲̥̭̤̓̽n̷̢̯̅̆̀̕͠ę̸͎̟̂̎̐̈͠ ̵͙̎̐̏̕i̶̲̩͇̍͋̑̐ṡ̶̥̲͂ ̶̠̹̲̭̻͋̒̄͜ŷ̴͙̓́͋͘ǫ̵̱͙͋͛͑ṻ̷̠̱̪̱̽͊̚r̴̠͇̯͓̤̟̂̌͒̚s̷̛͎̹̯̰̿̕.̵̐"

She was looking for Heart's owner. But Heart didn't have an owner. If he could speak human, he'd tell her not to waste her time.

"Heart!"

It was obvious the little girl would pick that name for him, he supposed. Naming someone by their distinctive features was a childish thing, after all.

(He wondered if Mad Rat would've liked a different name.)

The girl came rushing towards him as usual and ambushed him with a hug. She never got tired of this.

"Love you, kitty!"

It was a phrase humans used a lot. Heart had heard it before, but never really understood what it meant. The two humans said it to each other every day before the girl went to 'school', but the kitty part was unique to him. 

A hug means 'I love you', he realized.

Then he remembered all the times he'd hugged Mad Rat. Did Mad Rat know what 'love you' meant?

Heart hoped he did.

* * *

It was _supposed_ to be a temporary arrangement. But the woman never found an owner willing to take Heart. So there he stayed, as content as he could be in times like this.

One day, when the little girl came home from school, she was crying. Heart immediately went over to her, trying to figure out what was wrong. She let out garbled sobs as she clung to him, making his fur all wet and gross.

"What's wrong?" he mewed instinctively, knowing she wouldn't understand.

She just cried harder.

Heart went to fetch the woman. Another human would be better suited to calming her down, he reasoned. He pulled at her trouser leg with his teeth until she followed him to the girl's bedroom.

Heart watched as the two cuddled it out and jumped onto their combined laps.

"W̴̹̯͙̟͎̮̆̏͠e̶͎̠̙̜̮͒̾͑͝ ̴̲͙̗̎̎̈́͠l̷͗̎e̸̛̮̗̝̯̞̅̈̈͠a̶̔̒̂̐͘ř̶̥̗̀̇n̶̢̠̺̮̞͋̉e̶̛̫͍͖̝̩̮̅͗̓̏̾d̶̫̤̄͋̈́ ̶͔͛a̷̖̣̙͈̫͋̀͋̑͘͜b̵̨̹̂̓o̸͎͊̊͑̚u̸̡̮͉̞̔̓͝t̸̛̖͖̮̽̓̑͝ ̷̰͙̟̹̌͆͆̍͛͑d̴̢͓͍̗̐e̵͗̈́ȃ̴͑̒͌̒t̸̫̾h̵̞̉͌ at school."

The woman made a sympathetic face.

The girl kept talking. "W̴̗̆̕ͅi̴̛̠͈͑̑l̷̮͐ļ̷̻͕͌ ̷̡͗͜y̴̖̳̑̄o̵̠͗̈́͝u̴̥̳̮̱̻̍̑̽͗̈́ ̶̲͕̤͉̜͗͛͝ḍ̷̮͓̬̑͂͌̓̈́̈́͜ȉ̶̬͚͚̖͜e̸͕̦̱͔͎̫͐ ̷̢̤̞̺͔̐̾̈́̕͝t̶̨̟̊o̸̠̅̑ö̴̧̹̖͉́̆̚͜, mama? Ã̶̦̐̑̏̈ň̴̛̠̬͋̕d̷̰̟̭͐̏̊̀ Heart?"

Heart's ears pricked up at the mention of his name. He purred to let her know he was listening, although he wasn't sure of the exact context. The woman stroked his fur absentmindedly, reassuring the girl with garbled noises.

"E̸̮̙̲͖͗̔͛̅v̸̠̼͈̼͍͌̔̓͛e̷̺̯͙̝͒͒̈́̈́̚͜r̵̛͙̤̳͐y̷̺̜̲̱̩̽o̸̪̭̥̿͗͠ͅn̴̫̻̲̄ē̷̫͈̬͙͑̇̚ͅ ̶͕͋̈́̔ dies, ,̶̥̂̆̓͛ ̸̨̯̰͓̒̚͝ͅḧ̵͖̥̹͐̃͝ơ̵̧͉̤̆̏̋ṅ̵̙͈̚͠ͅḙ̷̢̪̾̏ẏ̵̨̪̘̼̭͑.̸͕̈́͒̀͗̍ͅ"

Die.

That was a word he'd heard before. The scientist said it a lot. The scientist said that about his corpse after Heart was removed from his body and placed into Mad Rat's.

Is that what 'die' was? To lose your body?

Heart knew the concept of death, of course, but not how it was expressed in human language. Mad Rat's body didn't have Mad Rat in it. His consciousness was gone somewhere. For the soul to relinquish the body... is that what dying meant?

Who could say? Certainly not Heart. He was just a cat.

The little girl, however, didn't seem to know that death existed until now. How strange that seemed when Heart spent his life living in wait for his end, whether it be by starvation or vivisection. She was innocent.

He wanted to protect her. Not just from trucks, but everything.

The girl whose name he did not even know was sitting there, bawling about something he didn't know about, and something in him broke.

Her mother watched in surprise as her cat nuzzled further into the child's embrace, mewling sorrowfully as if mimicking her cries.

"Waaaah!" The girl cried some more, holding onto Heart for dear life. The grown up hugged the both of them as Heart let out the despair he'd been holding for the past few weeks. It was as if he was crying out for himself, for Mad Rat, for the young girl's naïveté.

"Good kitty." She said through tears. "I love you."

It was the first time Heart completely understood a human. And he couldn't say it back, because he was only a cat. But a 'love you' was a hug, so he was sure she already knew that.

The woman let them go with a sigh and headed to the kitchen. 

"I̵̹̘̲͖͕͙͌͑͊̕'̵̫͖͐̚l̵̛͉̿̍̇̿͝ḻ̴̡̡̛̙̾̌̿͘ ̷͉̯̯͋m̸̧̞͙̮̊a̵͙̺͜k̸͈͙̲͎̇̐̈́̕̚͝ȅ̷͎̞̩̬̻̀̃͝ ̴̖̐̿͒̃̍ȳ̵̜̩̘̭̳͑̅̌ö̶̗̘̲̬́̄͂ú̷̘̹̥̤͙̹͘ ̵̱͂y̵̪͊̋̂̃̇̕ơ̶̳͍̺̇̄͑̽̆u̴̯̥͌̽̃̎̑̈́r̴̥͕̥̂ ̴̡̻̀͐͌f̸͇̉̋ă̴͍͙͇̦͎͝v̸̼̤͚̋͒͐͠͠o̵̤͕̒͘͜͠u̴̧̠͈͈̥̓̓̾͝r̴̨͈͍̈́͆ḯ̵̖ṱ̴̈́̏̋e̶̠̳̝̪̖̓́̍͜͝͠ food for dinner, o̴̟̼͒̿̒͘k̸̟̲̦̐̕å̸͚̎y̴̡͎̭̖͒̆̒͒?̵͎̘̎͘"

Heart and the girl were still sad. But regardless of their feelings, time ticked on, and their bodies had basic needs to be fulfilled. However, she had stopped crying, cheered up by the thought of food no doubt.

Heart ate from his bowl and as he saw the little girl smiling and shoveling some foodstuff in her mouth, he realized that he found a new purpose.

Mad Rat dedicated his life to saving someone else. So now, Heart would use his borrowed life to bring a little happiness to others, no matter how small. They may even pay the kindness forward, who knew?

He was incomplete without Mad Rat. Perhaps he would always be. But during their short time together, the lesson Heart learned was this: everyone dies, so try to leave a mark.

Comparing the girl's smile now to her tearful sobs earlier, Heart thought he might have found a way to do that.

For now, though, he was really enjoying his food.


End file.
